by Scott Rhine
Chapter 8
When the Fleet entered the Unity system Zane did not take any special notice. He sat in the cockpit with Omar reviewing the scans the big ships were sending to the rest of the Fleet. Unity was a highly advanced society, probably beyond the Fleet’s ability to trade effectively, definitely beyond their ability to threaten.
It was the first such system that Zane had visited. The entire system had been tamed and bent to the will of the locals. It seemed most peaceful with the only exception being the burnt remains of a moon orbiting the third planet. Even that seemed to be in the process of rehabilitation.
In short order the locals had sent out ships of their own to greet the Fleet. Smaller than the biggest Fleet ships but much more maneuverable they greeted the Fleet warmly but with little real interest. The Fleet Captains elected Omar to be their ambassador to the system, both a sign that his standing was improving and that the captains felt there was little to be gained in the system. Sending their most peaceful captain would help insure that the locals did not take a dislike to the overmatched Fleet and its roguish citizens.
As the Moving Finger docked with the sleek craft sent to rendezvous with them, Omar called the crew together to explain their jobs.
“The Fleet captains don’t think there is much here to gain. I think they’re wrong. Direct trade with the government may be ruled out but I want the lot of you to ask questions, explore a bit if you can. Everyone wants something, we just need to know what. Don’t overstep your bounds though. These are not people we want to anger. Pulan, I’m going to ask that you stay behind, both to keep an eye on my ship and because we don’t know how they’ll feel about alien species wandering around their ship. If everything is good, you’ll have an opportunity to stretch your… well, stretch.” Omar motioned to Zane.
“You’re with me.”
“I’m not really ambassador material Omar.”
“And you think I am? I want you as a bodyguard. They’ll notice Bella’s augmentation and think of her as a threat. Your advantages are less obvious. Just try not to look so dangerous.” Zane wasn’t sure how to not look dangerous so he settled on looking dopey. Stupid is rarely threatening.
The two men were greeted at the entrance to the local ship by a man and a woman. Zane had expected that they would be heavily augmented like the citizens of advanced cultures he had encountered before now but both looked completely human. Knowing his own genetic advantages he did not take this at face value. Instead he quietly watched them while appearing to be uninterested in the world around him.
“Welcome!” The man said warmly, extending a gloved hand. Zane noted that both locals were clothed from the neck down. Whether it was just a custom or they were hiding something beneath those skintight clothes he could not say. Neither wore conventional firearms though.
“Hello,” Omar replied, shaking the offered hand. “I am Omar Khayyam Hadi, the captain of the Moving Finger. This is my assistant, Zane. As a representative of the Fleet, I would like to say… uh we come in peace.” Zane choked back a snicker. Really Omar, He thought to himself.
“Of course, of course.” The man nodded, still smiling. “If you came any other way we’d be using your ships as scrap metal by now.” The woman placed her hand on the man’s shoulder and he faltered, stepping back and allowing the woman to move forward. “I am V. G. Price and this lovely lady is W. T. Forsyth.” The woman extended her hand as well and Omar took it lightly.
“A pleasure to meet you, Captain O. K. Hadi. May I welcome you to Unity and our ship, the Embassy.”
“Thank you, and please call me Omar. I don’t like to stand on rank.”
“Nonsense.” The woman replied. “There are over five thousand Omars in the Unity system. How would we ever be able to determine who was being referred to without additional designation information?”
“I suppose you have a point but are there more onboard this ship?” The woman seemed peeved by his question.
“Physically? No. However, there are over a thousand Omars in contact with this ship remotely and actively involved in the ongoing discussions concerning your arrival. To give you priority over the usage of the name would be an insult to those others.”
“My apologies, I had no idea.” Omar said.
“No doubt.” The man, Price, said. Zane liked these people less and less with every moment.
“Zane, do you have additional designation information? There are currently eight thousand with that name interacting with us.”
“Nope.” Zane replied earning a sour look from Omar.
“Very well,” Forsyth replied. She paused a moment. “The issue has been voted on and resolved. If you are amenable, we will utilize the designation M. F. Zane when referring to you. It implies association with your ship of origin. Is this acceptable?”
“Uh… I guess so.” Zane was now a bit nervous. It appeared that these people were in constant contact with much of the system’s populace and were capable of reaching decisions without speech. It reminded him a bit of Pulan’s description of his homeworld except this creeped him out so much more because these people looked so human.
“Excellent! It is good to have resolved that so well after the considerable conflict it caused.”
“Conflict?” Omar asked.
“There was substantial discussion concerning the acceptance of the substandard designation of Zane before the solution was proposed.”
“W. T. Forsyth,” Price began, “It has become clear that these travelers are not neurally linked. I speak aloud for their benefit. We assumed you simply had your networks behind considerable firewalls when you contacted us using speech and that your desire for direct contact was just a means to protect your datacores. We apologize for not realizing how primitive your society is.”
“It is understandable.” Omar replied. “We have much more experience with worlds in different development stages and we make similar mistakes.”
“As it has now become obvious that you can offer us nothing in terms of technological advantage, much of the populace has lost interest. Please do not take offence.”
“Perhaps there is still something we can offer.”
“I said much, not all. There is a market for your history in several areas. Our anthropologists are very interested in the worlds you have seen. Since the collapse of the stellar trade networks we have lacked much information about worlds beyond our immediate region.”
“Your region?” Zane interrupted.
“The fall of the advanced worlds left us isolated. We were not far behind them though. In the time since, we developed A.I. of our own that would rival ones from those early days. Their calculations indicated the dangers of limited use of stellar drives were minimal.
“We have built several ships with drives like your own and have explored the inhabited stars within a limited range. Though none were as advanced as our own we have considered colonization as a means to augment our civilization. We have utilized our own resources to the fullest extent possible.”
“So your A.I. do not believe the ships were responsible for the stellar explosions?” Omar’s disbelief was obvious in his voice.
“They were, but it was an event with a low likelihood of possibility. It was irresponsible usage of the ships without knowledge of the dangers involved that caused the fractures in space-time.”
“May we negotiate for that information? It might help us to deal with fearful civilizations we may encounter in the future.”
“We can provide that information, though it will be of little use to you. We had to convert a portion of an entire moon into data processors in order to allow the A.I. to calculate the final proofs. It would take a system with limited data resources a long time to validate those results.”
“This moon, was it the one which circles the third planet?”
“It was. The scale of intelligence required for the proofs resulted in an unstable system. In the end the entire A.I. had to be purged.”
“Unstable ho
w?”
“It was given fewer limiting parameters in order to expedite its calculations. While it remained stable long enough to give us several important proofs, it attempted to subvert other essential systems in order to complete its tasks in a timely fashion. It also began converting the remaining portion of the moon into additional processors. The entire moon had to be isolated and the surface irradiated in order to halt its progress. It is the greatest tragedy we have suffered in our long history. Millions of lives were lost.”
“That’s terrible.”
“Though it was nearly twenty years ago the wounds are still with us. Have you not seen similar problems on other worlds?”
“It seems that most worlds capable of technology at that level were also the ones wiped out.”
“That is troubling. We had assumed that there were other worlds as advanced as our own and that we simply had not heard from them yet. Many hailed your arrival as one of those worlds reuniting with us. We had some hope that our long isolation was nearing an end.”
“Regretfully, we hail from nowhere. The Fleet owes allegiance to no world.”
“Ah, you have become a transstellar civilization. Some among us have theorized that such cultures exist. Your statements are making quite an impact in our anthropological nodes.”
“Excuse me,” Zane said. “I have a question. If the odds of starships causing stellar collapse are so small, how come so many stars exploded in such a short time?”
“It is a mystery to us as well. We assume that the damage had been building for some time. Many believe that the first star’s collapse started a chain of events as its citizens fled in their ships to other advanced worlds, causing a cascade of space-time failures as the new ships entered the other systems. It is only conjecture though.
“We have considered an expedition to the nearest system we know of that has experienced the phenomenon. Perhaps more extensive scans of the aftermath could shed some light on this matter. However, the closest in our charts is nearly a year’s travel away. None of our vessels are capable of sustaining us for so long.”
“I’d like to be able to say we could look for you but it is doubtful that the Fleet would consider going to such a system. There would be no profit in it.”
“And you will likely not be passing this way again for centuries at any rate. This conversation has been fruitful for us though. It is interesting to hear from an outside perspective that is less concerned with farming than astrophysics.” Forsyth paused for a moment and then smiled.
“On behalf of Unity, I would like to invite your crew to join us for a few days. Those of your ships which would like to dock with our stations may do so as well. As the ambassador for the system I will freely provide your Fleet with enough local credit to enjoy themselves as well as the proofs you requested. In exchange, we would like the opportunity to examine your historical records and speak to your crews for personal stories from other worlds. I regret that we cannot give more generous terms but other than a moment’s curiosity you really have little to offer us.”
“I will have to discuss the matter with the Fleet captains but your proposal sounds reasonable. We can both gain something of value and lose nothing in return. May we have leave to return to our vessel?”
“We can patch you into your local network from here if you like. The encryption in your systems is rather primitive.”
“As may be, I am sure the captains would prefer I called from our ship.”
“The illusion of security can be comforting. Very well.” Zane felt his skin crawl at the words. As nice as the offer sounded, he could not help but feel like the locals looked down on them like they were bugs waiting to be crushed.
Zane and Omar returned to the ship in silence. After the airlock closed, Omar turned to him with a questioning glance. Zane shrugged.
“They’re a bit condescending but what do I know from advanced cultures? You think they’re hiding something?”
“I don’t know. I suspect that we have little choice but to go along unless we want to leave empty handed. If they are advanced enough to have had an A.I. the size of a moon then they are so far beyond us that I don’t know we have any choice.”
“I’d like a crack at their systems, Boss.” Franklin said, meeting them in the corridor.
“I’d prefer not to antagonize them. Someone else in the Fleet will be sure to do so soon enough. Let’s let them take the blame. You can give it a go if everything falls apart.”
“If you’re that sure it will go bad why agree to it?” Bella asked.
“I’m not sure telling them no would be a great idea. Also, the Fleet has been picking on the little guys for a long time. Maybe I’d like to see them get their noses bloodied for a change. Might mellow out some of the hawks.”
“Any concern that our little ship might take a hit or two as well?”
“Why should it? We’ll be guests of an ambassador with our ship attached at the hip to theirs. These people may be advanced but they seem civil enough. I doubt they’ll do any serious harm to the Fleet, just spank our behinds and send us on our way.”
Zane had misgivings about the strategy but Omar was rarely wrong and it wasn’t his job to make those calls anyway. The crew left Pulan on the ship and moved into guest quarters on the ambassador’s ship. Zane had never lived in such luxury before. Everything was automated and his every wish was granted as though there were a genie in the room.
At first, members of the ship’s crew pried him with questions about his past. Once they realized he didn’t really have one they left him alone. One doctor did show some interest in his genetics and did a few scans on him. Other than that he was left in peace. Franklin joined him a day or so later, a sour look on his face.
“What’s the matter bud?” Zane asked him.
“These locals can’t get enough of Bella but once they found out I’m a clone they started ignoring me. Its like I’m not even in the room.”
“Don’t take it personally. We just don’t have any stories to tell. Bella has been with the captain for years, she has dozen’s of worlds under her belt to talk about in addition to a lifetime of experiences on her homeworld. Compared to that, our short histories are pretty boring.”
“I know all that. It’s just…” Franklin’s face showed worry Zane had not seen in him before. The little man’s natural confidence evaporated. “I worry that one day she’ll realize how little I have to give. I’ve done the calculations and I am barely five years old by the calendar of her homeworld. Compared to her I’m practically a child. How can she love a child?”
“Dunno, but she does. Don’t go screwing it up by second guessing yourself. Experience isn’t everything. The captain has more experience than anyone and he’s alone.”
“Don’t be too sure about that.” Franklin smirked.
“What do you know?”
“Just something a little birdie told me… as I was prying around in the Moving Finger’s encrypted files. Omar protects his privacy pretty well but I am after all, me. He has reams of poetry he’s written, sent to an unlabeled address on the Sikorsky over the last few years.”
“He doesn’t look much like a poet.”
“How would you even know? Have you ever even read any poetry?”
“I downloaded a basic course from a teaching chamber. How do I love thee, thou are like a rose or something. Not my thing, really.”
“That’s because there is no poetry in your soul.”
“Oh I forgot, Bella has filled your soul with kittens and rainbows while I am just a mindless killing machine. You hacked into the local system yet?”
“You heard the boss.”
“I heard him.”
“Yeah, well…” Franklin looked embarrassed. “The thing is I can’t seem to find the local systems.”
“Can’t find them?”
“None of these people use terminals. Even the ship’s engineering section is smooth as a creche’s bottom. They must have stuff in their head that acts a
s a wireless interface but I’ll be damned if I can figure out how they’re doing it. Maybe if I could bring a scanner in here I could find out something but as it is I got nothing.”
Their conversation was interrupted by a loud claxon sounding. A voice came over the air, its language tailored to Fleet standard.
“Members of the Moving Finger contingent, return to your ship immediately.”
Zane followed Franklin as he returned to pick up Bella on their way back to the ship. She knew as little as they did and they rushed back to the Finger together. At the entryway they found Omar talking with the male member of the delegation in hushed tones. Omar nodded and the man moved into the ship with Omar. The rest of the crew followed. Omar cut them short from all communication with a quick word before engaging the ship’s engines.
“Uh, Omar, why do we have a guest and why did we leave so quickly.”
“Please, Mr. Price, would you explain? I have to concentrate to make sure we get back to the Fleet quickly.”
“It seems that our safety margins concerning stellar collapse were insufficient. The departure of several expeditionary ships soon after your arrival has caused a lapse in stellar stability.”
“Are you trying to tell us your star is going to explode!”
“Not as such. A disturbance of this magnitude will likely only cause the destruction of our networks and disable all craft in the system. It is likely that a significant portion of out populace will survive… at least for a while. However, I expect that your Fleet will not wish to become permanent relics in our system and will engage your star drives in order to escape. Your departure will magnify the coronal expulsion by several orders of magnitude and cause the death of everyone in this system. Your captain agrees that this is likely to be the Fleet’s response.”
“So what are you doing here?”
“I have asked Captain Hadi for sanctuary. He has kindly granted it.”
“Really?” Bella turned to Omar, incredulous.
“Price has asked me to save his life and I agreed. Without his warning we would never have gotten to the Sikorsky in time.”